Second Hand Clothing Consumption: Facts & Numbers

Second Hand Clothing Consumption: Facts & Numbers

Can Second Hand clothing consumption contribute to global climate change issues?

According to The Pulse of the Fashion Industry 2019 repport by the Global Fashion Agenda, the series of sustainable advancement in the fashion business has slowed by a third in the previous year.

Ultimately, is not moving quickly enough to offset the negative impact of rapid growth in the industry.

The fashion industry will be a net cause of global warming, posing new challenges for society.

A global goal of keeping global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius in the next years will not be met if current trends continue, if the fashion industry is ranked second among polluting industries.

The status of environmental contamination generated by the fashion industry is not improving, but rather worsening.

Key solutions in the fashion industry concerning a circular economy

As a result of the circular economy's worries, the fashion industry begins to look for alternative ways to recycle and collect post-consumer commodities.

People are increasingly donating or selling used clothes to thrift shops.

This can be selling used clothing through alternative channels such as

• garage sales
• flea markets
• internet platforms
• donating
• exchanging among relatives

What is Second hand fashion? - Circular economies

Buying or receiving used clothing is called second-hand consumption (Geegamage et al., 2021).

The brick and mortar or online stores that offer this type of retail products are also called thrift shops.

An advantage is often a price below the market average prices for fashion prices.

Regarding a record high inflation rate in the UK in 2022, this can support customers along the way of making sustainable consume changes.

Customers who buy second hand clothing often prefer a higher quality but also desire to find something unique among the sentiment and other compared to fast fashion.

So What is the catch regarding pre-loved clothing?

Purchasing of second-hand clothing is linked to collectively, owing to the relationships that facilitate interactions within the thrift sector.

On the other hand, even when customers are aware of the risks of buying used clothing, they do not engage in anti-consumer behavior.  

Even though consumers avoid quick fashion brands and retailers, popular companies provide authentic and high-quality second-hand products, which have been used as price criteria.

Individuals, in the end, set their own guidelines for what is valid and what is not for prices, social acceptance, and self-well-being.

Sources

Geegamage, T., Ranaweera, A., Halwatura, R.U., 2021. ´Second-Hand Fashion Consumption: A Literature Review´. Conference: ERU Symposium 2021. DOI:10.31705/ERU.2021.6